Chaos in your office? Four ways to get your office under control in 2017

A well-organised, efficient office is key to running a trade service business that’s both profitable and fun to own.

Here are four simple steps you can take to get your office under control.

Task analysis

The first step in getting your office under control is to complete a thorough task analysis.

Task analysis involves creating a list of all the tasks required to run your office, and includes everything from answering the phone to taking care of invoicing, payroll, compliance certificates, quoting, and documents for vehicles.

The more detailed the list the better – so ensure you get everyone in your business involved to cover everything.

Remember, it’s just as important to list all the activities that you’re not getting to right now, like marketing (website, social media, email marketing or building relationships with local contractors), team performance reviews, and other activities that will help your business grow and improve.

Job descriptions

Once you’ve listed all the tasks, assign them to specific roles: receptionist, office administrator, estimator, and so on. Don’t forget to also assign those tasks that you’re yet to get to.

By clearly outlining what tasks each role is responsible for, you prevent confusion around who is responsible for what.

Clear roles are important in any business, but especially so in a family business when a husband and wife may work together!

Key performance indicators

Including Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in your job descriptions ensures your team has a clear understanding of what good performance is.

Take the role of office administrator, for example. The KPIs for this role could include:

all quotes followed up one day after sending

all jobs invoiced within two days of completion

a Profit and Loss statement completed by the 10th of the following month

all tax obligations filed and paid on time.

You might like to introduce an incentive program to reward your team for achieving their KPIs to improve productivity.

Checklists

Once you’ve completed your task analysis and job descriptions, and you’ve set up KPIs for each role in the office, a daily and weekly checklist helps ensure all tasks are completed.

Include in your checklist all the tasks for the day and the time of day the task should be completed. Weekly tasks should also be assigned to specific days and times; for example, the task ‘follow up overdue accounts’ could be included on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon.

Monthly and annual tasks such as tax payments or annual accounts can be included, too. The act of physically checking off a task encourages more ownership and accountability from your team (and yourself).

You’ll reduce your stress levels as all the tasks are written down and no longer stuck in your, or someone else’s, head.

Tony Fraser-Jones is the director at Profitable Tradie. Over the past 10 and ½ years Profitable Tradie has helped more than 485 Plumbing, Electrical & Trades businesses to improve their systems, make more profit and get their time under control. Profitable Tradie’s Million Dollar Tradie training program has helped turn good Plumbers, Electricians and Tradesmen into great business owners. To find out how Profitable Tradie can help you, visit profitabletradie.com, call the team on +64 7 859 3425 or email info@profitabletradie.com.